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Obituaries

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WILKES-BARRE - Two people were reportedly robbed Wednesday night, becoming the latest victims in a spate of violent robberies to plague the city.

In one case, a man was repeatedly stabbed in the chest, stomach and back, and in the other the victim was beaten to the ground, police said.

The robberies came hours after city officials released a statement warning the public about three cellphone thefts and a robbery that occurred Tuesday and Wednesday - and renewing a warning about "Apple picking" - the practice of robbers asking to borrow a cellphone only to run off with it.

Wilkes-Barre police Chief Gerard Dessoye said Thursday that while it appears one group may be responsible for some of the Apple-picking incidents that have plagued the city in recent months, the robberies Wednesday night did not appear related to that trend, nor to each other.

"I think these two robberies were completely unrelated," Dessoye said. "It doesn't seem to fit the pattern or M.O. or this particular cellphone, Apple-picking nonsense."

Officers were first called about the stabbing about 10:50 p.m. Wednesday. The juvenile victim, who was not identified, reported he was walking east on Academy Street near Carey Avenue when he saw a group of about nine men with their faces covered, police said.

One of the men approached the victim and demanded money, but the juvenile refused, police said. They got into a fight, and then a second man entered the fray, stabbing the victim in the chest, stomach and back, police said.

The robbers took $80 in cash and a T-Mobile cellphone from the victim, who then went into a nearby market to call his mother, according to police. She brought him to Wilkes-Barre General Hospital for treatment.

A few hours later, at 3:40 a.m. Thursday, police were notified of a reported robbery on Public Square.

The victim, who also was not identified, told officers he was walking from the Ramada Inn to the Verizon building when he saw three teens approaching him. The man turned away to avoid them when he was jumped from behind, police said.

The teens punched him, knocked him to the ground and ripped both his back pockets as they stole his wallet, which contained cash and credit cards, police said. The teens then fled across the square, according to police.

The robberies came on the heels of another just a night earlier. A teenager asked to borrow the victim's phone at the Intermodal Transportation Center about 11:10 p.m. Tuesday, and when the victim turned it over, the robber walked away with it, police said.

The victim followed, prompting several other teenagers to attack him, police said. The victim sustained minor injuries and was treated at the scene.

Police have reported multiple other robberies in recent weeks, including a group of teens robbed on Public Square and two separate cases of college students being robbed of their cellphones.

Dessoye said police have documented about 17 phones stolen this year, both in robberies and simple thefts. As a result of the recent uptick, Dessoye said he has expanded a nighttime downtown unit's area to focus on trouble spots as they pop up.

"I have certain special units looking out there for this group of kids," Dessoye said. "I'm not looking necessarily to catch a crime in progress. I want to see what kind of groups we have out there and identify the participants. There's a lot of kids out and about that aren't committing crimes."

Police are also reviewing hours of surveillance footage and interviewing witnesses in an attempt to identify the robbers, he said.

City officials are warning residents not to loan their cellphones to strangers and not to pursue the robbers if their phones are taken.

"It seems more once they get the phone in their hand and if you try to get it back, that's when they become aggressive," Dessoye said.

jhalpin@citizensvoice.com, 570-821-2058

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